Given the significant negative impact of livestock disease outbreaks on animal and public health, preventing disease spread through biosecurity practices is important. In this study, we used a nationally representative dataset that included information on biosecurity practices of almost 300 Irish dairy farmers. We applied parametric and non-parametric estimation methods to assess the economic implications of adopting the following biosecurity measures: vaccination, bulk tank milk testing for diseases, and not pooling colostrum. We found mixed evidence of biosecurity practices on economic outcomes, measured as gross margins per cow. Specifically, we found that vaccination and testing bulk tank milk for diseases were significantly associated with better economic outcomes for dairy farms. However, we found no significant association with the economic performance of not pooling colostrum from more than one animal. Our findings have important policy implications required for targeting support for the adoption of biosecurity practices in dairy herds.

中文翻译：

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奶牛养殖中采用生物安全的经济分析：来自爱尔兰的证据

鉴于牲畜疾病暴发对动物和公共卫生的重大负面影响，通过生物安全措施防止疾病传播非常重要。在这项研究中，我们使用了一个具有全国代表性的数据集，其中包括近 300 名爱尔兰奶农的生物安全实践信息。我们应用参数和非参数估计方法来评估采用以下生物安全措施的经济影响：疫苗接种、散装罐牛奶检测疾病和不合并初乳。我们发现了生物安全实践对经济成果的混合证据，以每头奶牛的毛利率来衡量。具体来说，我们发现疫苗接种和检测散装罐牛奶的疾病与奶牛场更好的经济成果显着相关。然而，我们发现不从一种以上的动物中收集初乳与经济表现没有显着关联。我们的研究结果具有重要的政策意义，可用于支持在奶牛群中采用生物安全措施。